Recently, letters, voices and images are increasingly electronized. Mobile terminals have been developed which reproduce so-called multimedia data composed of combined electronized letters, voices and images from second terminals through a network such as telephone lines or the Internet or via communication means. One of such mobile terminals is an electronic book device that reproduces electronized book data in a specified voice.
The electronic book device comprises a storage medium that stores electronized book data, a liquid crystal display unit, a manual input unit that selects desired book data and/or turns the page, and a controller that controls the respective elements of the book device. When desired book data is selected at the input unit, the controller reads the selected book data from the storage medium, and displays the data on a first page thereof on the display unit. When an instruction of page turning is given at the input unit, the data on a next page is selected and displayed on the display unit.
Compared to a conventional book made of paper, the electronic book device restricts consumption of resources and is capable of storing data of a plurality of book data. Thus, it is convenient to carry about and to manage the book. Since the electronic book device has such various advantages, the development of electronic book devices has recently advanced rapidly.
Like the conventional books made of paper, the electronic book device, however, only offer letter and/or image data to a user so as to visually read the data. Therefore, the book device is poor in expressiveness. Thus, realization of richer expressiveness provided by a combination of letters, voice, and images is desired.
Books range from stories/novels made mainly of letters to cartoon or comic made mainly of mixed images and letters. In the case of a cartoon or comic, many letters and images are displayed on one page, so that in the portable electronic book device letters and images displayed on the display screen are difficult to view dearly due to a restricted size of the screen.
As the portable telephones and other terminals have diffused, a user frequently carries an electronic book device of the above type and many other wearable devices about the user. Therefore, it is desired to improve the operability of the respective devices to be carried about in tie simultaneous usage of the functions of the respective devices and the convenience of carrying the devices. The electronic book devices have several aspects to be improved further.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an electronic book data delivery apparatus, an electronic book device and a recording medium that are capable of reading the content of a book aloud in the voices of reciters who include well-known persons, voice actors/actress, etc.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an electronic book data delivery apparatus, an electronic book device and a recording medium that are capable of obtaining anywhere and anytime images and voice data of reciters who include the famous persons, voice actors/actresses, etc., that read the content of a book aloud, and causing a desired one of those images to be displayed and to recite the content of the book aloud in its voice.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an electronic book data delivery apparatus, an electronic book device and a recording medium that are capable of reading aloud the contents of a book in a voice comfortable to a user.